Integration courses
Immigrants have the possibility to attend an integration course.
Those courses are government-sponsored. The participants shall acquire adequate language skills and common knowledge. In those courses, they also get to know the culture, history and legal system of Germany.
Legally entitled to attend an integration course are:
- New immigrants who entered the Federal Republic of Germany after January 1st 2005 and you have received a permanent/long-term residence permit. People without any language skills are obliged to attend those courses.
- Ethnic German immigrants
New immigrants will get their eligibility certificate via the aliens' registration office Soest or, for the city of Lippstadt, via the local aliens' registration office (contact details on the right).
Newly immigrated ethnic German immigrants are given their eligibility certificates by the Federal Administration Office in Friedland.
In case you are not legally entitled to attend an integration course you may be admitted to the course on request, if you are:
- Foreign nationals who have received a permanent/long-term residence permit prior to January 1st 2005
- Citizens of the European Union and their family members
- Ethnic German immigrants who have, so far, not attended a government-sponsored language course.
Costs
Participants who have an eligibility certificate to attend an integration course have to pay 1,55 Euro per lesson. The attendance of an integration course will, on request, be free of charge for persons receiving unemployment benefit II or social welfare benefit.
Persons with a limited income are also entitled to apply for exemption from the charges. However, those persons are not legally entitled to a complete exemption.
In case of normal integration courses, the course consists of a total of 600 lessons/hours of language course and 100 lessons/hours of orientation course. Those courses may be attended as full-time or part-time courses:
- Full-time course: 5 lessons per day, duration: max. 6 months. Unemployment benefit II - recipients are usually obliged to attend full-time courses.
- Part-time course: minimum of 5 lessons per week.
The language course lessons may, if required, again be extended by 300 lessons/hours. However, there are also intensive courses with 400 lessons/hours of language course and 30 lessons/hours of orientation course.
Do you have any questions or need help, please contact the competent aliens' registration office (see contact on the right).
The providers of language courses accredited for the integration courses will also provide you with personal counseling.
For more detailed information about the integration courses, please see the websites of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees .
